Expand Student Literacies and Engagement Through the Liberal Arts

A Strategic Pillar

Lives of Meaning and Impact

A liberal arts education is crucial in today’s world of division, disinformation, and frequent environmental and civic disaster.

Students at Washington University already receive excellent training and knowledge in their chosen fields and endeavors, but we can expand our offerings to equip them with literacies that go beyond their areas of focus, preparing them to be fully informed, active participants in a rapidly changing society.

Today’s students ask not just for the knowledge needed to take the next steps in their career paths, but also for exposure to the probing questions and programs of study that will enable them to build lives of meaning and impact, engaging the world in fulfilling ways that serve individual and collective well-being. Innovations in our educational structures can meet this demand while bolstering the already strong faculty and student connection that exemplifies Arts & Sciences at Washington University. By emphasizing literacies across different disciplinary approaches and expanding integrative modes of learning, we will foster undergraduate and graduate student learning that equips our students to more fully navigate and serve the world beyond WashU, including success in making the transition to the next chapters of their lives. 
 

Metrics of Success

Success measures for this pillar will include:

  • Greater rates of student satisfaction with aspects of the curriculum and courses
  • Number of students participating in internships
  • Changes in student perception about their career preparedness, and the increased use and/or consultation of career and life-design services that can help students develop these literacies
     

Learn more about how this pillar will be put into action

View our Inaugural Initiatives